


Seasons of love

by Renjy (Mauness)



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coffee Shop, Dog Shelter, First Kiss, First Meetings, Fluff, Getting Together, Internship, Joly week, Mentions of Anxiety, Multi, Some Amis as side characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-17 05:34:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29220297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mauness/pseuds/Renjy
Summary: My late fic for Joly week 2021.Snapshots of a year in Joly's life, while he is dealing with anxiety (partly due to hypochondria) and meeting new people.For the prompts: FIrst meetings, seasons, confessions, and animals.And yes, the title is based on a song from Rent.
Relationships: Joly/Bossuet Laigle, Joly/Bossuet Laigle/Musichetta
Kudos: 2





	Seasons of love

**Winter**

I had to give a list of addresses I would most like to work at for the internship of my degree. While I do have made that decision, I'm still not sure if I really want to work at any of those places. They will all probably raise my anxiety. Of course I don’t know how clean things will be until I am at the intership, but knowing myself.. I don't have any choice though. Today I am supposed to get an email from my internship coordinator telling me where I'll go and with some background information. I haven't received anything yet and it's getting later on the day. To distract myself from the nerves, I make a small walk as a distraction from my thoughts.  
After the walk and having dinner I finally have received the email about the internship. I see that my internship is at one of the places that I liked going to most, a local dog shelter. Dogs somehow counter my anxiety, despite that I know that they can have been anywhere. So I'm happy with getting this internship. It will be nice to be around animals.

A few days later it's my first day at the dogs shelter. I'll mainly be meeting everyone and getting things explained in more detail today. Yet, I'm still on edge while walking to the counter of the shelter. The woman at the counter kindly leads me to a room where the people that work today seem to have their morning consultation. I introduce myself when everything else is talked about. After a short introduction round of eevryone, one of the team members shows me where everything is and explains all the rules again. It is nice that I will be mostly working behind the scenes and by myself. At least there won't be much other people around me that can stress me out. That helps.  
I decide to treat myself to a cup of coffee at the end of the day. Usually I go to the coffee shop close to my home, but I come across a small coffee shop close to the shelter while walking home. It seems to be a cozy place from what I can see so far, so I guess it can't harm to check it out. I can always come here again in breaks if I like it here. That's why I open the door and enter the coffee shop. It is indeed a cozy place. While I'm waiting in line I check what kind of coffee's they have here, I am delighted to see that there is soy milk as option. You don't see that everywhere, and while I don't really mind a regurlar coffee macchiato, I do prefer one with soy milk. The barista smiles at me when I give that as order when it's my turn. ‘Sure, who is it for?’ she asks.  
Which makes sense with how they seem to make the orders while you pay for it and wait for it. It is going to be fun with my name though. ‘Joly.’  
To my surprise the barista asks if it is spelled like happy or like pretty in French. I haven't heard that one before. 'Like happy but with one l,' I reply. 'Thanks for asking.'  
'Of course. With Musichetta as name, I know how frustating it can be and I wouldn't want that for others,' the barista Musichetta smiles before she gets my coffee ready.

**Spring**

Some dogs have grown on me after working at the shelter for 6 weeks. At first I just saw them in my passing by at break times, but lately I consciously have spent more time around the dogs in my breaks. I have always been allowed to, I just prefered staying by myself and safe at first. The dogs are what made me change my habits, I just had to see them more often. Right now it’s near the end of my shift. I only have to clean things up before I am done. Before I do that, I take a small break to visit one of my favorite dogs, Persephone. A bald guy who seems to be around my age walks in the shelter while I am standing near Persephone. She is a quite unruly dog and she is definitely not the easiest of the ones we have here, but I never see her being that way. She seems to like me and I like her too. The guy walks up to me and asks me where he would need to go for information about adoption. ‘I can show you the way?’ I propose.  
Surprsingly Persephone looks with interest to the other guy and still looks at ease. ‘Sounds good,’ says the guy. ‘But before we go, who is this sweet dog?’  
‘Persephone,’ I say. ‘Though she usually more unruly than sweet.’  
‘Then you must have some magical abilities if she is this sweet right now,’ the guy smiles.  
I like this guy, he seems to have good humor at least. ‘Or you have the magical abilities,’ I smile in return.  
‘That would be a first, but maybe,’ the guy laughs.  
I laugh with him while we walk to the adoption area. In the meantime I ask out of curiosity what made him decide to go to the shelter for a dog. ‘Well, I know what it feels like to have bad luck. So I would like to give a rescue dog a bit of good luck.’  
‘That’s a heartwarming reason,I am sure any dog here will be more than happy with you.’  
The guy smiles again. ‘I hope so,’ he says.  
‘i’m sure,’ I insist, before I tell the receptionist that the guy next to me would like to adopt a dog.  
She goes over questions with the guy while I excuse myself to clean up the last things from my stiation.  
  
I'm a bit too much in my own mind when I get outside with my bag, so I realize too late that I am not on my own in front of the shelter. Which causes me to bump into someone. My bag falls. Of course, the day was going too good till now. I was bound to get anxiety at some point. ‘I’m soo sorry,’ I hear the guy from earlier say.  
He has picked up my bag and hands it over to me. I doubfully accept it. ‘I am.. I really didn’t mean to..’ the guy says.  
I realize what my doubts might have looked as. ‘Oh no, don’t worry,’ I say. ‘I wasn’t doubting that. And you’re also not the only one at fault here.’  
He looks at me. ‘Are you sure? You look a bit off.’  
‘It’s allright,’ I say. ‘Nothing to worry about. Anyway, did you find a dog?’ I ask.  
‘Oh, yeah,’ the guys says, he seems to get an idea after that. ‘And I know how to make it up for this accident.’  
‘You really don’t have to do that.’  
‘Still.. And I saw how much you liked Persephone. So if you ever want to come and visit her once she is settled, you’re welcome to.’  
‘You took her?’ I ask.  
The guy nods hesistant. ‘That’s great, she deserves a good home!’ I say smiling. ‘If you really mean it, it does would be nice to be able to see her again.’  
‘Then we will make that happen.’ The guy smiles too. 'Maybe we should exchange numbers for that?'  
'We should,' I comfirm before picking my phone. 'What's your name and number?'

**Summer**

I'm glad that it's after doing the last exams and study things I had to do. If all goes well, I should be able to graduate soon! That is great and it is also great to have more free time now. I did already keep going to the shelter from time to time after the internship, while also dropping by the coffee shop there because the coffee is great, but now I have more time to do it without deadlines in the back of my mind. And I have more time to spend with my friends now, including the guy who adopted Persephone, Bossuet. We have become really close ever since that day. Also.. maybe I might be crushing on him a bit as well as seeing him as a good friend, but I won’t sabotage the friendship over a crush. Though I also have another crush, who is not a friend, and I still haven't asked her out neither. So I just don't usually share those feelings I guess. Currently Bossuet, Grantaire, Bahorel, Feuilly and I are drinking and talking at Bahorel and Feuilly’s place. I missed hanging out like this with my friends. It really is good to do this again. Bossuet sits next to me on a couch. I look at him and somehow can't completely resist the attraction today. I get a bit lost in his eyes. 'Are you okay?' Bossuet asks me.  
I nod. He keeps looking at me concerned, he clearly doesn't believe me. 'I mean it, I'm fine Bossuet.'  
We are now looking at each other. 'If you are-' he begins.  
Unconsciously I have moved closer to him, and without thinking about it I interrupt Bossuet with closing the distance. 

I break away when I realize what I've done. ‘I.. uh..’ I start, not really knowing what to say.  
‘Finally!’ Grantaire exclaims.  
I look at him. ‘What? You both obviously like each other.’  
‘R!’ I protest.  
‘He is right,’ Bahorel says. ‘Though he could have used a bit more tact.’  
I look back at Bossuet. ‘Sorry for my friends,’ I say. 'And for.. for that kiss too.'  
'They mean it well,' Bossuet replies. 'And if Grantaire and Bahorel are right, you.. maybe don't need to be sorry for that kiss.'  
He looks uncertain to me. It takes a bit of time before I completely understand what he has said. 'If they are right.. So you like me too?' I ask.  
'Yeah, but I didn't want to ruin the friendship, and that is bound to happen knowing me..'  
'I thought the same for me,' I admit to him. 'But it doesn't have to happen if we both think the same and talk this over on a date?'  
I mean, it looks like he likes me too. Hopefully I have read that correctly and not just said something that will ruin our friendship. 'As in just us two?' Bossuet asks.  
'Yes, us two.' I comfirm softly.  
'Sounds nice!' Bossuet smiles.

**Autumn**

To celebrate being officially together after our dates of the last few months, Bossuet and I are visiting our favorite coffee shop again. It's the one near the shelter. Apparently we both have been there by ourself and we both like the coffee there, so it has become our main dating spot. To the point that most of the baristas recognize us and greet us. It's is nice to get such a welcome from everyone, but if I'm honest I do have a barista I like most, Musichetta. I hope to see her today and if I know him well enough, I think Bossuet thinks the same. I have seen his smiles whenever we see that she is our barista, and I saw him being even more clumsy around her a few times too. We haven't talked about it yet, but I do think I get why he is that way. I don't blame him at all, still not while we're together. Musichetta is really is nice and seems rather badass, and we can't always stop what we migth feel. Maybe we can onr day ask her to become a friend of us. One day.. For now it's nice to walk through fallen leaves with someone instead of doing so by myself. Bossuet also has amazing humor and spirit, so it is always a joy to be with him anyway. I'm really lucky that he likes me.  
We enter the coffee shop and see Musichetta at the counter for taking coffee orders. I nudge Bossuet. 'It seems like we have good luck on our first date as couple,' I smile to him. 'With Musichetta as barista.'  
Bossuet looks at me like he doesn't get what I'm getting at, but I do notice the slightest hint of a blush. My thoughts about that seems to be right then. 'Don't worry, you're not the only one who is happy about it,' I say sofly, so the others can't hear us.  
'But we are..' Bossuet starts.  
'Doesn't mean we can't like others. As long as we stay honest with each other and don't cheat,' I say.  
Bossuet hums approvingly, btu we stop talking since we are nearing Musichetta. She smiles at us when she sees us. 'The usual for both of you?' she asks.  
I nod. 'And two cinnamon rolls,' I add.  
Musichetta says that she got it and gets the cinnamon rolls for us. We pay and wait for our orders. WIthout asking for our names, Musichetta gives us our orders when they are done. 'Enjoy yoir drinks, guys.'  
Bossuet and I both thank her before we go to sit at a table. We start with the cinnamon rolls while talking about our last few days.  
  
Before I know it, we've been at the coffee shop for more than an hour. 'Maybe we should order something else?' I suggest to Bossuet, consering our drinks and food are finished.  
'Oh, there is no need for that. We're not busy and we know both of you,' I hear Musichetta answer to that.  
I turn a bit around and see her standing at our table. 'That's nice to know,' I smile. 'Can we help you with anything?'  
'Maybe,' she says with a look at Bossuet and me.  
'What can we help you with then?' Bossues asks kindly.  
'Sorry for being this blunt,' Musichetta says. 'But I like you both and I would like to get to know the both of you. Ofnly i you two want it of course.'  
'Well, Joly was just talking about something like that earlier today,' Bossuet smiles. 'So we could give it a try?'  
They both look at me. 'I'm up for that,' I smile too. 'As long as you two are sure about it.'  
'I would not ask it if I wasn't,' Musichetta answers.  
'Fair enough,' I reply.  
'And you observed it right,' bossuet says. 'So we can go for it.' 

**Winter**

I can't believe it. Instead of sitting by myself in my room and letting my thoughts take control over me, I am now on my way to Bossuets place. To meet with my boyfriend and girlfriend. And I am nto even having worries in my head about it. I am just happy to be seeing the both of them and cuddle with them. With the bonus of seeing Persephone. Who is still an amazing dog. She is slightly less fond of Musichetta than Bossuet and me, but it is going well enough that it's no problem. Musichetta, Bossuet and I really couldn't be happier than with how we ended up together. Our first meeting outside of Musichetta's work was at a park. We talked there for hours and it became clear that the chemistry between the three of us felt wonderful for all three of us. And it still feels wonderful to me.


End file.
